


Responsibility

by FirebirdsDaughter



Series: Game Demos - Works of Kamen Rider Ex-Aid [6]
Category: Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Genre: Discussion of Major Character Death, Gen, Original Character(s), Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-17
Updated: 2017-07-17
Packaged: 2018-12-03 09:31:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11529465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FirebirdsDaughter/pseuds/FirebirdsDaughter
Summary: There was a voice in his head.Get it done.Ultimas is forced to come to a final decision about what he's willing to sacrifice to complete his mission.





	Responsibility

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers for Ex-Aid episode 39. I was disappointed we didn't see what happened to Graphite after Parad ran off, so here's a little piece involving my boy Ultimas.  
> In case you can't tell, I really subscribe to the idea that Parad and Graphite care for each other--Ultimas is starting to get that idea, as well...

     There was a voice in his head.  
  
_Get it done_.  
  
     Ultimas stood on the rooftop, too far away for them to see him, but so that he could see them.  
  
_There’s nothing stopping you now_. _Get it done_.  
  
     He watched the proceedings, not with interest, but with an analytical, calculating eye. The voice was still whispering in his mind.  
  
_It’s your responsibility_. _He’s your monster_. _Your Frankenstein_. _Get it done_.  
  
     But watching the climax of the battle between Ex-Aid and Para-DX didn’t make him anymore inclined to listen to it, so he shushed it, stepping back from his perch; then he was a trail of purple-blue data, flowing off into the stream, reaching out his feelers once again.  
  
     Graphite wasn’t hard to find. Not only did he smell more than ever like Gemedus, but his condition had begun to deteriorate even faster since the small tussle with Parad, and he wasn’t far from the same location. He literally caught the Bugster when he stumbled, falling forward, barely able to walk from the effect of the monstrosity consuming his data.  
  
     And now there was the girl, too. Ultimas was starting to think Gemedus was trying confuse him with multiple potential hosts.  
  
     “… You look terrible.”  
  
     He wasn’t sure if Graphite recognised him or his voice, but he reacted, jerking away, back slamming into a tree. “… You…!”  
  
     “I’m not here to kill you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”  
  
     Graphite didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t flee or attack—probably because he didn’t have the energy, rather than trusting the words. “… What do you want?”  
  
     There he hesitated; he wasn’t sure what he was doing, either. “It seems I feel a… Responsibility for you.” Graphite’s only response was a glare. Ultimas looked around, cataloguing their surroundings. “We’re too exposed here. We should move.” He grabbed the Dragon Bugster’s arm, slinging over his shoulders, merely tightening his grip when Graphite tried to pull away.  
  
     But Graphite kept fighting, though his movements were weakening. “I’m not going anywhere with you! I need to find Parad.”  
  
     “Para-DX is dead!” Ultimas snapped bluntly. It wasn’t a harsh tone, but the effect was immediate. Willing or not, Graphite sagged, his weight dropping against Ultimas’ side, his eyes glazing over with something Ultimas didn’t understand. He knew the reason for the pain in the Bugster’s expression, but could not imagine it. “I need to get you out of here. Unless you’d rather become Cronus’ next lunch?” He didn’t wait for an answer, instead teleporting them away.  
  
     Fortunately, he knew the area, and moved them safely to the shade of a cave in one of the many rock-faces. Once they were both fully there, he allowed Graphite to pull off his shoulders and stumble to the wall, sliding down to the ground. In the silence that followed, Ultimas walked back to the cave’s mouth, looking out; they were high up enough to grant him an excellent vantage point from most directions. A grunt from the Bugster drew his attention behind him.  
  
     “… Why are you helping me?” Graphite spat the words, but there was no real venom in them.  
  
     “I told you. Responsibility.”  
  
     “For what?” The Dragon Hunter Z Bugster tried to lurch to his feet, but lost the strength part way through, settling for shooting daggers from his eyes. The black veins on his face grew, deepening. His distress was making the foreign data devour his even more quickly, almost like he was suffering from the Game Disease.  
  
     Ironic.  
  
     Ultimas wasn’t certain how to answer the question, turning to look back at the world outside as he searched for words. “For Gemedus.” He didn’t know if it was the name or his tone, one more worthy of a funeral pronouncement, that quieted Graphite. But something did, so he continued. “He wasn’t created by humans—not Dan Kuroto or Masamune. He was created by me, many years ago.” He crouched down, picking up a stick and prodding at the dirt caked between the stones of the cave floor. “But… He became something else, something dangerous.” He hesitated to go into full detail about what had transpired between him and Gemdus, instead leaving it at that. “The thing that’s… That’s killing you. And the girl. I’m the reason it exists.” He turned to look at the Bugster, forcing his face to stay impassive; it wasn’t hard—he was starting to realise that there were a great many things he didn’t really understand about the way life worked.  
  
     Graphite was staring at him, in contrast, with a mixture of expressions. Ultimas couldn’t identify them all—some went beyond his scope, but he was surprised to see that foremost amongst them was pity rather than hate. Still, when the Bugster spoke, there was an edge to his voice. “It’s not killing me.”  
  
     Ultimas tossed his stick aside, standing. “Maybe not right now, but it will. Especially with Para-DX gone.”  
  
     At that, Graphite turned away, huddling into himself. “He had a name,” Ultimas heard him snarl, “It was Parad.”  
  
     They were both silent after that.  
  
     As the day became night, Graphite surprised him again by falling asleep. He supposed that their kind could sleep, and he’d just never tried, but the Dragon Bugster had actually looked like he’d needed it. It didn’t seem comfortable, curled up in a ball on the hard stone of the cave; but when he was asleep, he wasn’t getting himself killed, so it was preferable.  
  
     While Ultimas had been distracted, the voice had found it’s way back.  
  
_You should kill him_. _You should kill him_. _And the girl_ , _too_. _Gemedus is your monster_. _You must destroy all parts of him in this world_. _You should kill him_.  
  
_Yes_ , he thought, _I should_.  
  
     He couldn’t.

* * *

     Graphite woke to sunlight, and someone humming.  
  
     It was a tune he recognised—one of the old game jingles that had once played in the background of the older version of… He couldn’t remember the title, but the tenor of the sound was familiar.  
  
     Familiar enough that he could leave his eyes closed for a minute and pretend Parad wasn’t dead.  
  
     Fear wasn’t a new concept for him—he supposed that was because the human who had been his host had been a mature adult, albeit a young one. The woman had known fear; when her mother was dying, when her dog was hit, when a child ran into the road, whenever a boat ride was particularly bumpy. No, fear was no stranger to Graphite, nor was death. He’d never believed it putting anything less than his life on the line anyway.  
  
     But Parad…  
  
     It was easy to forget, sometimes—at least it had been—how young Parad was, mentally. When he plotted and planned and showed off his skills, he often came off as more stable than he was. But his of maturity had frozen the day he was born; the fleeting, selfish desire of a young child. While Parad’s brain couldn’t be—couldn’t have been—rivalled, his emotional awareness was that of a petulant child. Graphite was well aware of that.  
  
     He should have looked after him better.  
  
     Then, the events of the previous day came back to him, and he realised who the person humming had to be. He sat up quickly, casting about for Ultimas, not wanting to be caught off-guard.  
  
     He found him crouching once again at the mouth of the cave, gazing at the outside, facing away. He was considering his options when Ultimas spoke.  
  
     “… You’re awake. You were making noises.” He stood, coming back in to sit on the ground across from Graphite. “… You look terrible.”  
  
     Graphite tried to stand, but stumbled, so he settled for leaning back against the cave wall, taking deep breaths and watching Ultimas carefully. “I’m fine.”  
  
     “You may have been able to lie to Para… Parad, but that’s not going to work on me.”  
  
     Graphite tried not to look grateful for the use of Parad’s name, folding his arms and scowling. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”  
  
     “You’re acting like a child.” Ultimas stood, turning away again. “But if you’re trying to drive me away, you can’t. You’d be easy prey for anyone if I left you here alone.”  
  
     Graphite’s scowl deepened, then turned into a wince. He clutched his chest as if that could quell the burning feeling rising in his ribs, curling into himself again, growling in pain. His antics made Ultimas turn back, and rush over to kneel beside him. He felt a cool had press against his back, and the suffering faded away somewhat, enough to ease his breathing. He could hear and feel the glitches flickering through his body, but they, too, slowly stopped as Ultimas kept his hand on his shoulder blade.  
  
     “… What did you do?” He asked, his voice half a snarl.  
  
     “Made it go away. For now. You should try to get your emotions under control; the more worked up you get, the faster it happens.” Ultimas began to rub his back in a way that a human would describe as fatherly. “… I shouldn’t have been so blunt with his death.” A hesitation. “… I’m sorry.” The words sounded strange in Ultimas’ baritone, powerful voice. Graphite didn’t respond, looking away as quickly as he could. There was a long silence between them.  
  
     “… Did it hurt?”  
  
     “Hm?”  
  
     “Did he… Did he suffer. When he died.” The question was from the woman’s memories, the same one she’d asked her father about her mother when she died. It felt a little strange, but predominately natural, applicable.  
  
      Ultimas was quiet for a long time, enough to make Graphite look back at him. He was staring at the opposite wall, in a way that cast a shadow over his face that Graphite couldn’t see through. “… No.” He said, finally, but his voice sounded odd. He waited another moment before moving his head back into the light, and clapping the Dragon Bugster on the shoulder once. “You need rest. And maybe meditation.” He stood moving away. Graphite decided that trying to move would be too difficult, so he lounged back against the cave wall, grinding his teeth together, thinking about Parad.  
  
     He should have looked after him better.

* * *

     He needed to be more careful. Ultimas walked to the mouth of the cave, rubbing his hands together. This was a very closely timed mission. He needed to stay with Graphite until he was certain the Bugster wouldn’t be hunted down by Cronus or CR, or worse, explode into Gemedus if left alone—but he needed to address the issue of Gemedus’ other potential host before it was too late, as well.  
  
_You should kill them_. _You should kill them both_.  
  
     The voice in his head was back, it’s tone growing nasty, accusatory.  
  
_You created him_. _You must stop him_. _No matter the cost_.  
  
_No_ , Ultimas thought back, _the cost does matter_. He looked back at Graphite, looking almost relaxed against the cave wall, but tiny twitches of his shoulders and a small furrow in his brow betrayed his pain.  
  
_Kill them both_.  
  
_I’m not killing him_ , he replied, confidence in his mind for the first time in a long while, _and I’m not killing her_ , _either_.  
  
     After that, the voice went silent.

**Author's Note:**

> Short, yes, but I wanted to write it. Also, I'm finding I really enjoy writing for Ultimas.


End file.
